Shows like To Catch a Predator use the computer to track down dangerous pedophiles who give all sorts of story. I even saw one who tried to say that he came all the way to the house with beer and condoms in hand to “warn” the girl of the dangers of inviting strangers to her home…..some of that stuff is amazing. However, as of June 2009, Massachusetts state troopers have found a new way to track down and prosecute criminals. Cops still use technology, but one state trooper in particular used an Xbox to gather evidence of sexual crimes!

He turned to digital forensics, because having never done any of this before, he had no idea how to search the device for information. However, the case was that the suspect may have taped himself having sex with a 14 year old on the Xbox 360, which you can do these days.

The Xbox was in the bedroom at the time and had a webcam attached to it. All of the webcams on his computer were in different rooms, meaning they probably did not tape the incident. Not everybody knows that the 360 has evolved to provide this option, but obviously technology is just not what it used to be.

This state trooper is certainly not the only one. An increasing number of police and other authorities are actually using consoles like the 360 to look for evidence in various types of crimes. Investigators can track anything from cell phones to game consoles. In fact, some have used PS3’s, Nintendo DS, iPods, and even a Zune in one case before.

Not all agencies have been able to find incriminating data using these methods or consoles. However, considering consoles can be recovered even after being stolen because of the connected live accounts, all of this is not such a bad thing.

So far, investigators are working on even including Xbox 360’s in undercover operations and other stings. Who knows what the future will truly hold.